Inappropriate Photos in the News

[Jen]

Does your local news ever run completely inappropriate photos?

I saw one in our newspaper the other day--two motorcycles collided head-on near here and a photo was on the front page of the paramedics working on both of them. You could see their bodies and their faces. One of the men died and they knew this when the newspaper was printed, because it was in the caption on the photo. I thought that was way wrong.

Then, today, I saw this article about a guy who suffocated while hiding from MAF, who he mistook for police (http://www.stuff.co.nz/4844869a11.html). He had outstanding arrest warrants, apparently. Anyhow, the picture of the deceased shows him topless in the shower holding his naked son. No, I'm not offended by the little glimpse of baby genitals, I'm offended by the fact that they showed the poor kid's face when they're talking about his dad crawling into a locker and suffocating.

Or how about this sexy Bebo-profile shot of murdered teenager Marie Davis? (http://www.stuff.co.nz/4756338a11.html) Couldn't they have found a photo that made her look a little less like the kind of girl who would intentionally invite a 38 year old internet stalker over to her house?

Strangely enough, we don't get a picture of this fine upstanding citizen (http://www.stuff.co.nz/4845355a11.html) who escaped his chain gang and might be hiding out in our town. Nor did we get a picture of the missing twelve year old kid (http://www.infonews.co.nz/news.cfm?l=1&t=0&id=33322) we were meant to be looking for yesterday.

Thoughts?

Or post your own.

[Angel]

I don't see a problem with either of the pics you posted. I think the one you described with the motorcycle crash was inappropriate, though.

[Jen]

In the case of the webcam shot, it's not that it's actually offensive, but it sends a different message than the news story does.

In the case of the man holding his naked son, I think it violates the kid's privacy.

[Fi]

Nor his penis or bum are showing. What's so inappropriate about that?

[Angel]

*shrug*
I think it's a cute photo.

[Angel]

Originally posted by Jen
In the case of the webcam shot, it's not that it's actually offensive, but it sends a different message than the news story does.


How on earth do you get that?

[Jen]

Originally posted by Fi
Nor his penis or bum are showing. What's so inappropriate about that?

Like I said, I'm not offended by the nudity--though you can tell he's a boy from the pic, if you know what I mean. I'm concerned that they showed his face in a story that talked about his dad getting his dumb ass suffocated because he mistook a MAF agent for a cop. It mentions his dad's arrest warrants. I feel it violates the kid's privacy.

And when we're talking about a 15 year old girl who got raped and murdered by someone she met over the internet, do we really need a Bebo style photo where she's posing, Bratz doll style in full make-up? Couldn't we just see a school photo? Or is the author of the story really trying to make us question whether this girl was purposely being seductive to this older man and ended up getting killed?

[Not That Guy]

Plane crashes in New York about 4 hours ago.

[Jen]

Yep, read about that.

Haven't seen any pics of the bodies, though, or anything from their Bebo pages.

Better get Stuff out there. Or the South Waikato newspaper. :D

[Angel]

Originally posted by Jen

And when we're talking about a 15 year old girl who got raped and murdered by someone she met over the internet, do we really need a Bebo style photo where she's posing, Bratz doll style in full make-up? Couldn't we just see a school photo? Or is the author of the story really trying to make us question whether this girl was purposely being seductive to this older man and ended up getting killed?

What the FUCK? Are you seriously impplying that because the picture was taken on an odd angle, and that she was wearing makeup, she actually deserved what she got? Because that's sure as fuck what it sounds lik eyou're saying. You're no better than the guys who say "Oh, she was dressed like a slut, she had it coming."
She was standing next to her HORSE. It was hardly a fucking suggestive photo, and even if it HAD been, it shouldn't make any difference. jesus.

[Jen]

I personally don't think she deserved what she got.

I think the reporter is implying it by choosing that photo. Anyone with half a brain could have chosen a more appropriate photo.

[Angel]

Actually, they usually ask the family to supply a photo. I doubt the reporter chose it.

[Jen]

Can't they say, "Give us a better photo?" They don't have to use the word "slut."

I dunno, just seems way inappropriate to me in a news article. Maybe in a tribute article or something about what a fun, happy kid she was, but not in a news article.

[Not That Guy]

Well i must admit that since my local newspaper got a new editor ive noticed that the pictures are more sensationalised and ive also noticed that when they take pictures of say school events there are more pictures of scantily clad girls now.
I am also not the only one thats noticed this as there were plenty of letters to the editor pointing out how the paper was slipping.
His answer was to stop accepting Non De Plumes on the letters.
Now i cant write anymore.

[Jen]

Originally posted by Not That Guy
Well i must admit that since my local newspaper got a new editor ive noticed that the pictures are more sensationalised and ive also noticed that when they take pictures of say school events there are more pictures of scantily clad girls now.
I am also not the only one thats noticed this as there were plenty of letters to the editor pointing out how the paper was slipping.
His answer was to stop accepting Non De Plumes on the letters.
Now i cant write anymore.

*snicker*

You have my permission to use my name to complain about the slipping standards of journalism in our local and national papers.

Maybe unprofessional is more the word I'm looking for. And if a family is to provide photos, couldn't they be given some standards--like full clothing, facing forward? Don't kids get their school pictures done anymore?

And in the case of Mr. Naked, the newspaper could have chosen to crop the photo to just his face, excluding his toplessness and his naked kid.

Lastly, nobody's mentioned why we're allowed to post sensational photos of the dead and dying, but not of those who might be lurking around the corner waiting to kill us or those who are missing and supposedly in danger.

[Angel]

uh, wearing a singlet top does not count as not being fully clothed.

And we've never really had the school photos done like you do in America.

[Jen]

You mean parents don't have one decent, non-sexualized picture of their own kids? School photos are just an example.

Marie Davis isn't the one I was calling naked, though. The one who's not fully clothed is the dude standing in the shower.

That photo simply doesn't belong in the news. At all. For any reason.

And if it's ok to make all of these private things public, seriously, why don't we get pics of escaped convicts and missing kids?

[Brad]

Originally posted by Angel
uh, wearing a singlet top does not count as not being fully clothed.

And we've never really had the school photos done like you do in America.

that's bullshit, there's always school photos, everywhere, maybe your parents just thought you were to ugly to spend money on photos.

[Angel]

I have to agree that they probably could have found a better picture for the guy.

And sure, there's the option to have school photos, but they're usually shit and a waste of money. It doesn't seem to be as big here as it does in the States.

[Not That Guy]

I see jens point in this although i dont see anything wrong in the pictures in question here. However i have noticed a definit decline in morals and ethics when it comes to the printed news.
However its not just that.
I was walking through the Riccarton Mall prior to christmas and i couldnt help but notice a more than lifesize poster of a preteen in a sexy pose wearing fuckall advertising a pair of Jeans in a chain store window.Now i am the first to admit that i like the female figure in many states of attire and lack thereof but even i thought it was a little inappropriate to have such blatant underage sexism paraded to all and sundry to sell preteens jeans.

[Jen]

I think NTG makes my point better than I do.

I think I found a couple of really excellent examples of this in the pictures for the articles that I linked.

[Brad]

Originally posted by Not That Guy
I see jens point in this although i dont see anything wrong in the pictures in question here. However i have noticed a definit decline in morals and ethics when it comes to the printed news.
However its not just that.
I was walking through the Riccarton Mall prior to christmas and i couldnt help but notice a more than lifesize poster of a preteen in a sexy pose wearing fuckall advertising a pair of Jeans in a chain store window.Now i am the first to admit that i like the female figure in many states of attire and lack thereof but even i thought it was a little inappropriate to have such blatant underage sexism paraded to all and sundry to sell preteens jeans.

watch nickelodeon, i've seen less than childlike pictures of that girl who wears the pink wig.

[Jen]

I think NTG's right that it's a cultural trend. TV is increasingly sexualized as well.

[Not That Guy]

Originally posted by Brad
watch nickelodeon, i've seen less than childlike pictures of that girl who wears the pink wig.
Yea her ive seen on Russian B boards in totally inappropriate situations.
I think Russian men have a rather funny fetish for her.
Id post pics but they are a little how should i say it......pedo.

[Jen]

Yeah, you don't need the party van to show up at your house.

One last time, can anyone tell me why the media never post pictures of escaped convicts or missing kids in NZ?

[Not That Guy]

because there escaped or missing....
think about it.

[Jen]

If they're missing, someone's reported them missing and, if they actually want their family member back, should provide a photo.

If they've escaped from prison, a mugshot should be readily available.

[Angel]

Originally posted by Jen
If they're missing, someone's reported them missing and, if they actually want their family member back, should provide a photo.

If they've escaped from prison, a mugshot should be readily available.

I do agree with this.

[Jen]

Yeah, with the escaped guy, it just says, "Hughes is a Caucasian, of medium build, 171cm tall with short blond hair and tattoos on his arms and back." So... if I see a tall, blond white guy with tattoos, I should call the cops? Why tell us about the escaped prisoner at all if the description is going to be that vague?

[Fi]

Originally posted by Angel
uh, wearing a singlet top does not count as not being fully clothed.

*lol* *lol* *lol* *lol* *lol*

All I can think of is Jen in the picture of Tim's singlet now and even though the picture isn't funny, Jen wearing a singlet kind of is :-X

[Dan]

I realize this thread has diverted quite a bit, but I would think they chose that particular picture of the girl so parents would see it and wonder what exactly it is their 15-year-olds are doing late at night on the computer.

[Jen]

Originally posted by Fi
*lol* *lol* *lol* *lol* *lol*

All I can think of is Jen in the picture of Tim's singlet now and even though the picture isn't funny, Jen wearing a singlet kind of is :-X

Yes. If I ever get brutally murdered, please, please, PLEASE do not send that picture to the media. I beg you.

[Jen]

Originally posted by Dan
I realize this thread has diverted quite a bit, but I would think they chose that particular picture of the girl so parents would see it and wonder what exactly it is their 15-year-olds are doing late at night on the computer.

Okay, so they're using these people's daughter as an example. Fine. Make the article say, "Teenage internet whore murdered--is your daughter a whore, too?"

Wait, that would be an editorial, and that would be where the picture would be appropriate. This was a factual story about trying the murderer.

[Fi]

Originally posted by Jen
Yes. If I ever get brutally murdered, please, please, PLEASE do not send that picture to the media. I beg you.

Hahahaha I wouldn't.

Singlet *lol*

[Brad]

Originally posted by Jen
Yes. If I ever get brutally murdered, please, please, PLEASE do not send that picture to the media. I beg you.

if you die, i'll stalk the people i don't like, which is mainly people from here, and kill them in their sleep, one by one.

[Dan]

Originally posted by Jen
Okay, so they're using these people's daughter as an example. Fine. Make the article say, "Teenage internet whore murdered--is your daughter a whore, too?"

Wait, that would be an editorial, and that would be where the picture would be appropriate. This was a factual story about trying the murderer.

At the risk of sounding like a dumbass, would you care to elaborate? I fail to see your point.

[Jen]

Originally posted by Dan
At the risk of sounding like a dumbass, would you care to elaborate? I fail to see your point.

An editorial is an article in which the writer expresses his opinion on the situation.

A news article states the facts.

If the news writer wanted to make a point by using a slutty picture of the murder victim, he should have done so in an editorial, and actually stated his viewpoint, which might have been, "While this young girl didn't deserve to be murdered, she was clearly using her Bebo profile to seduce older men. Parents could prevent this by monitoring their chidlren's Bebo profiles for sexy pictures such as the one above, and educating their children about why giving their address to a 38 year old pedophile is a Bad Thing."

[Jen]

Just to give an example of doing things properly, there's a man missing in my hometown right now (http://www.journaltimes.com/articles/2009/03/03/local_news/doc49ac5472595c3299347916.txt). Notice how a photo of the missing person is included, rather than a vague description, and that the photo does not picture the man naked and certainly does not feature his naked children. He is also not making a Bratz Doll face in the picture.

[Jen]

Okay, maybe Stuff has developed some new standards with its new layout. No Bebo photos of stabbing-accused Tae Won Chung. (http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/1996574/Korean-student-remanded-after-stabbing-charge/)

[Jen]

I think Hell has just frozen over. Stuff just posted a missing person story with a photo of the fat, missing Maori in it! (http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/2021411/Missing-person-appeal)

And you don't have to be afraid to click because she's not naked!

[Angel]

...She doesn't look fat?

[Jen]

I guess it's in the eye of the beholder.

At least she's not naked.

I guess Stuff has developed some standards along with its new layout. Other than the fact that they now link the blogs off of the main page, so you have "Fart stories I heard on the internet" linked right beside the national news.

[Angel]

I think the photo makes her look fat, but it doesn't looks like she'd be particularly fat in real life, or if the pic wasn't a bit weird, if tat makes sense.

[Dan]

I think Jen just has a distorted view of "fat."